Cooling and dispensing apparatus for kegs



March .1937. E. c. CLIFFORD 2,074,365

COOLING AND- DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR KEGS Filed Aug. 11, 1954 3Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR EDWARD C. CL/FFo/Po ATTO R N EY March 23, 1937.E. c. CLIFFORD COOLING AND DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR KEGS Filed Aug. 11,1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 mm! A INVENTOR E DWAED C. CLIFFORD I BY ATTORNEYMarch 23, 1937. E. c. CLIFFORD 2,074,365

COOLING AND DISPENSING APPARATUS FOR KEGS Filed Aug. 11, 1934 5Sheets-Sheet 3 A g g 1 ,4 :5 .L :11 a 1o I Fflgi INVENTQR EDWARD C.CLIFFORD BY W M ATTORNE Patented Mar. 23, 1937 UNITED STATES COOLING ANDDISPENSING APPARATUS: FOR KEGS' Edward 0. enema, sand Lake, N. Y.

. Application August -11, 1934, SerialNo. 739,459 7 12 Claims. (01. 225-40) This inventionrelates to cooling and dispensingdevices for barrelsand more particularly refers to improvements in devices of 'the typewhere a barrel or keg, from whichliquidis to be withdrawn, is supportedwithin a'casing provided with means for cooling the contents of thebarrel or keg.

In a patententitled, Barrel supporting and cooling device',iNo.1,957,199,issued to me on May 1, 1934, reissued Novemberfi; 1934; No.Re. 19,361, I have described and claimed a support for a barrel,consisting of two sections hingedtogether along a longitudinal edgeadaptedLwhen-closed to form a: housing partially at: least enclosing theperipheral portion'of the-barrel. The inner surface of saidihousing isspaced a. certain dis-- tance from the surface of the 1 barrel;providing a space adapted. to:* receive a a; networkof conjduitsfor thepassage of 'ithecooling medium.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide acoolingdevice fonbarrels, embodying the invention forming'the: subjectof my above mentioned-patent and alsoproviding a supporting cabinetstructure for the cooling device, forming with it acompletelyself-contained unit, equipped with all the necessary means" forproducingthe circulating: oycle of the cooling medium and formaintainingpredetermined conditionszwithin the barrel; at. the same timesupporting. the barrel at a' h'eight convenient for the dispensing ofliquid directly therefrom.

Another) object of the invention isto provide. a coolingv and supportingunitfor barrels, of a novel and compact construction, said unit being 35complete with all necessary. cooling equipment and being preferably of aportablecharacter and adapted to be placed; in any convenient availablerelatively small space: p

A further object is-to provide' a device of the 40 character specified,adapted] to support two barrels, sothat at all timeson'e-barrelmay be ontap while the other is being pre-cooled, said device comprising thenecessary cooling equipment'and means for reversing the connections ofth'ecooling medium so as to always cause it to expand first around thebarrel from which liquid is being.

dispensed, where a lower temperature is required.

A'still further object is to provide, in a supporting and cooling.device, adapted to hold two barrels, one for. pre-cooling and the otherfor dispensing liquid, means mounted on the deviceitself, making itpossible tohandle barrels for placement in or removal from. theircooling and:

55 dispensing position, so as torender the device absolutely independentof all outside means for itsoperation.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will more fullyappear as the description proceeds and will be set forth and claimed. inthe appended claims.-

My invention is illustrated byway of example in the-accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Fig; 1 is a vertical section of the upper portion of my device, formingthe casing forreceiving and cooling a barrel;

Big. 2 is a planview of saidicasing, with the top section separated-fromthe lower section and with cooling: coils permanently: mixed in eachsection;

- Fig-.3 is a detail view 'of portions of conduits used for circulatingcooling medium;

Fig. 4 is'afrontviewin elevation ofanother device with parts broken awayto show the interior of the cabinet portion: thereof;

Fig. 5 is a side viewin elevationthereof; with parts broken away toshow. the arrangement of various elements within the cabinet portionthereof;

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view through line 66 of Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a front view in elevation" of a device embodying myinvention, adapted to: support andcool two barrels at the same time;.said"device being also provided with. means for handling the barrels;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary vertical longitudinal section through the top ofthe cabinet-portion of the device shownin Fig. '7, illustrating themeans for reversing the connections-for the cooling and servicing of thetwo barrels;

Fig. 9 is a detail side view in elevation of the control valve shown inFig. 8;

Fig 10 is across section in an ehlarged scale through line Ill-Ill ofFig. 9;

Fig; 11' is a cross section in an enlarged scale through line I l-HofFi'g. 9; and

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary horizontal section through line l2--l2 of Fig.1.

Referring toFigsr l, 2, 3, upper and lower sec"- tions of the casing areindicated at lfl and H respectively; The topsection l-fl comprises aperipheral wall l2 to the ends of' w-hioh are secured end. walls l4 and15; The lower section His provided with a peripheral wall [6, similar inconfiguration to the wall It and with endwalls I! and I8. The end walls[4, I5; I! and I8' have their inner edges of substantially semi-circularconfiguratiomasat t9, so that when the sections are closed, as in; Fig:4', annular rings will be formed of pairs of end walls at the respectiveends of the sections, with the walls l4 and H as one pair and the wallsl5 and i8 as another pair.

The longitudinal walls and the end walls of the two sections may beconstructed of wood, although it is to be understood that othermaterials of suitable nature can be used, and preferably these walls areto be made of, or covered with, some. stain and acid resisting metal,such as, for example, stainless steel.

Hinges 35 are provided to connect adjacent longitudinal edges of thesections, while locking devices 36 serve to lock the sections together.Spaced from the interior surface of the wall [2 is a liner I9, ofsuitable material, such as metal, having a curvature conforming to thecurvature of the barrel, said liner extending between the ends I4 and IEto which it can be secured. By this arrangement of outer wall and liner,a space is provided in which is placed insulating material 20, which maybe any suitable material having good thermal insulating properties. Thelower section H is provided with a liner 2|, similar to liner I 9 and aspace in which is placed insulating material ,22, similar to insulatingmaterial 29.

Positioned in the lower section H is a network of conduits 25, sointerconnected by means of elbows 26 that a continuous passage isprovided from one extreme conduit to the other for the circulation ofsuitable cooling medium. These conduits 25 extend immediately above theliner 2| in such fashion as to provide a network which conforms, totheoutline and the shape of the liner 2!, and, ,of, course, to thesurface of the barrel. The network of conduits can be permanentlysecuredin lower section I I in any desired fashion.

.The upper, section is similarly equipped with a network of conduitsfastened within said'section in the same fashion as the lower network isfastened in the lower section.

a All of the conduits are provided with fins 44, in the nature of thin,strips of metal extending around each conduit in spiral fashion alongthe length thereof. These fins aid in cooling articles supported withinthe two sections;

An inlet pipe 45 leads from suitable compressing and circulatingmechanism through a tube 49, downwardly extending from one end of thelower section, into communication with one extreme conduit in thenetwork of conduits in the lower section H. The other extreme conduit ofthis network is connected by means of a flexible tube 46 to one extremeconduit of the upper network. The other extreme conduit of this networkis connected-to a pipe 41, which leads back to the hinged side ofthe'section and is connected to a flexible tube 48, which also passingthrough the tube leads back to the compressing and circulatingapparatus.

Thus a complete circulation of cooling medium first through the lowernetwork and then through the upper network can be accomplished.

To protect the conduits of the lower network, use is made of a bar 50,fastened to the end wall l8 and extending longitudinally of the lowersection I I to the other end wall ll thereof, at which point it may bebent downwardly, as at 5!, to be secured to said wall ll. Thisprotecting bar is in a slightly higher position than the network ofconduits, so that it will prevent contact between the barrel andtheseconduits.

- Since condensed moisture will collect within the casing, it isnecessary to provide means for withdrawing the same, especially when thedevice is to be defrosted. A drain 52 communicates with the lowest pointof the liner 2| and extends upwardly through the end wall H. A valve canbe provided therefor, if desired.

Strips of good thermal insulating material 60 are secured to each edgeof the walls of the sections which contact with other edges, or whichcontact with the barrel positioned in the casing, to insure that therewill be substantially no circulation of outside air in the chilled spacewhen a barrel is in position to be cooled. The mate rial 60 may be ofany suitable character, such as,

'for example, sponge rubber, so long as it possesses goodthermalinsulating properties.

The structure so far described, per se, forms the subject of my otherpatent above referred to and its various novel features have beendescribed and claimed therein.

As stated in the premises, the present invention is more particularlydirected to a self-contained structure of which the cooling casing justdescribed forms a part, said structure being complete with a suitablecabinet forming a support for the casing, the space in said cabinetbeing utilized for housing all the elements necessary for compressingand circulating the cooling medium, as well as a supply of carbondioxide to be used in connection with carbonated beverages.

In Figs. 4 to 6 I illustrate a single unit type of cooling andsupporting device embodying my invention, in which 16 designates acabinet-support, having a front frame '11! and a rear frame '12,connected by side braces, such as l3, l4, 15, said front and rear framesextending upwardly as at 16, l'l,,to form a front and a rear support forthe casing, the outline of the upper surface of said supports followingthe outline of the lower part of the casing and the rear support 11being higher than the front support H5, so that the casing together withthe barrel therein contained will be tilted sufliciently to insureproper drainingv of the contents thereof through the spigot S, which isarranged to be at the lowermost possible point of the barrel, when saidbarrel is positioned in the lower section of the casing.

The resulting structure is provided with a bottom 18, a top 19, a frontpanel 80, two side panels 8!, 82, and a rear panel 83. Said panels arepreferably provided with transversal slots, such as shown at 84, inorder to provide ventilation for the interior of the chamber formedthereby. The top 79 of said chamber is preferably vertically spaced fromthe lower side of the casing, partly for the sake of appearance andpartly in order to set in evidence the fact that no pipes from a remotecooling plant are used to supply the beer to the barrel. The independentand portable character of the device is further emphasized by providingthe bottom of the cabinet with casters, such as 86, which make itpossible for the device to be moved to any convenient place.

The front support 16 is provided with a frontwardly extending supportingframe 87, on which can be placed a pan 88, provided with a removableperforated tray 89, said pan remaining directly under spigot S and drain52, as Fig. 5 clearly shows. Said pan will collect all the liquiddripping from the spigot and drain, as well as the excess foam thatshould overflow or be combed off the top of the glass placed upon tray89, when liquid is discharged through spigot S. Since pan 88 isremovable, the liquid therein collected can be disposed of from time totime.

Chamber 85 provides the necessary space for housing the compressor 90,the electric motor 9|, driving said compressor by means of a belt 92,and the condenser 93, the motor 9| being connectible to any availablewall socket bymeans is placed directly behind the motor, so that saidmotor can be equipped with a fan 9!, directing a stream of cooling airagainst said condenser.

As Fig. 4 clearly shows, the discharge end of the compressor isconnected to the inlet end of the condenser by a tubular connection 96,while the discharge end of the condenser is connected to the network ofconduits in'the lower section by pipe 45, pipe 48 leading from thedischarge end of the network of conduits in the upper section to thesuction end of the compressor, thus completing the circulating cycle ofcooling medium. As stated, pipes 45, 48, are led to the inside of thelower section through a'tube 49, 'effectively concealing all tubularconnections.

The device is particularly intended for use in connection with kegscontaining carbonated beverages, especially beer. It is well known thatthe problem of dispensing carbonated beverages, particularly beer, atthe desirable low temperature, is much more involved than that ofdispensing cold water.

Furthermore, beer presents certain other difficulties, in view of thenecessity of preventing fermentation, as well as the formation of excessfoam, resulting in extreme cases in the delivery of so-called wild beer.At the same time, beer and other carbonated beverages should bemaintained with a sufficient amount of carbon dioxide in solution,preventing them from becoming flat and should be delivered at a pressuresuflicient to cause a certain agitation liberating bubbles of gastherefrom, with the formation of a certain desirable amount of foam orcollar.

Carbonated beverages generally can be maintained in the desirablepalatable condition, due tothe presence of carbon dioxide in solution,by connecting the container'to a source of carbon dioxide, said gasreplacing the liquid as it is drawn, and excluding the presence of air;said carbon dioxide being maintained at a predetermined pressure, suchas may be found best according to the nature of the liquid itself andthe temperature and other conditions under which it is dispensed fromthe container.

In this connection, it is necessary to bear in mind that a chilledcarbonated liquid will hold in solution a greater quantity of carbondioxide than the same liquid at room temperature, so

that an excessive pressure need not be maintained within the containerin order to insure the proper content of carbon dioxide in the liquiddispensed therefrom.

In the case of beer, it is also particularly desirable to maintain arelatively low pressure within the keg so that the beer may be deliveredwithout excessive agitation and with the correct amount of foam orcollar, and itis also essential that the pressure remain absolutelyuniform.

It is also, of course, highly desirable that the beer be drawn directlyfrom the keg, in order to prevent its coming in contact with metallicsurfaces which impart to it an objectionable taste.

'70 In most installations for dispensing beer, the

counter or bar on the floor above. The dispensof a plug 94; attached toaflexible conductor 95. It will be observed that the condenser 93 ingapparatus is provided with cooling coils, through which the beer iscaused to flow before reaching the outlet and during this process itacquires a disagreeable metallic taste. Furthermore, in order to forcethebeer from the basement to the floor above it is necessary to supplythe carbon dioxide at relatively high pressure and this, as stated,results in the formation of excess foam which must be combed off theglass and which constitutes a material source of loss.

My device provides an ideal way of satisfactorily meeting all the abovementioned conditions. It provides an effective arrangement for coolingthe beer or other liquid right in the keg and for dispensing it on taptherefrom, while cold, that is, in the best condition for retaining insolution a sufficient amount of carbon dioxide, without maintaining anexcessive pressure within the keg. Furthermore, the necessity ofmaintaining anex'cessive pressure within the keg is also done away with,due to the fact that the liquid is dispensed from its original containerand, therefore, does not have; to be forced from a lower to a higherlevel. The resulting combination of low temperature and low pressurewill cause the liq uid to be charged with the proper amount of gas andto be delivered without excessive agitation, with its flavor unimpairedby contact with metallic surfaces.

In order to realize these conditions, I also provide space in chamber ofthe cabinet for the placement of a drum 91, containing carbon dioxideunder pressure, said drum being as usual provided with a regulatingvalve 98, equipped with a pressure gauge 99. Atube I09 leads from saidregulating valve and through tube 49 to the inside of the casing, theouter end of said tube being equipped with a plug lill, the stem ofwhich, 192, can be forced in the opening usually provided in the bungI93 at the top of the keg. Plug IN is preferably equipped with a valveE94, by means of which the flow of carbon dioxide can be cut off whenthe plug is withdrawn from an empty keg, previous to its removal andreplacement of another 'full keg.

As stated, in connection with beer and other carbonated beverages, it isdesirable not only to maintain a relatively low pressure within the kegbut also to insure a condition whereby said pressure will be uniformlymaintained. Although the regulating valve 98 makes it possible to supplythe'carbon dioxide from the drum to the keg at the desired pressure,this does not prevent the pressure from rising within the keg, due tothe liberation of gas contained in the liquid itself. I accordinglyprovide in the circuit of tube ml an adjustable relief valve, such asshown at #95 in Fig. 5, which will be set at the same pressure as theregulating valve 98 and which will cause any excess gas Within the kegto be discharged therefrom.

Due to the fact that it requires some time to chill liquid within a keg,the use of an apparatus such as described generally requires anauxiliary pre-cooling installation, in which kegs are stored andmaintained at a relatively low temperature, so that when placed on thesupporting and dispensing device the liquid contained therein will beready to be dispensed in short order. Full kegs ordinarily weigh abouttwo hundred pounds or thereabout and, therefore, their conveyance fromthe pre-cooling chamber to the dispensing device will necessitate theuse of traveling hoist facilities, for instance, a trolley hoist.

.Inlsmallinstallations it iscdesirablegthat the device be complete initself also in respect to precooling and handling of the kegs and,therefore, I have devised the type of apparatus illustrated in Figs. 7to 11. The same consists of a cabinetsupport I 06, within which islocated the compressing and circulating plant for the cooling medium,the upper part I01 of said cabinet-support being formed to receive twocasings, I08, I09, side by side, said casings alternately serving aspre-cooling and cooling and dispensing housings for kegs I I0, I I I,placed therein. Furthermore, said cabinet-support is preferably providedwith a crane I I2, of the job or goose-neck type, rotatable about avertical axis by means of a crank lever II3. Said crane is provided witha suitable hoisting mechanism, such as indicated at II 4, includingcable H5, running between upper block H6 and a lower block I I I, thelower block being provided with two gripping arms II8, I I9, adapted togrip the ends of the keg I20, as shown in dotted lines at H8 and H9 inFig. '7.

By virtue of this arrangement it is, therefore, possible to raise thefull keg from the floor to a level above the lower section of the opencasing and to turn it 90 to the right or to the left in order to lowerthe keg in position. The new keg thus placed in position will bepre-cooled while the liquid in the other keg is being dispensed, andwhen said other keg will have been emptied the keg which was previouslypre-cooled will be used for dispensing and the empty keg will bereplaced by a new full keg which in its turn will be pre-cooled.

It is, of course, desirable to maintain the keg from which liquid isbeing dispensed at the required low temperature and, therefore, theexpansion of the gas used as a cooling medium should be caused to takeplace first in the network of conduits of the casing within which thedispensing keg is placed. It is, therefore, desirable to provide asuitable arrangement whereby the cooling medium is alternately caused tofiow first through one casing and then through the other one.

An arrangement of this type is illustrated in detail in Figs. 8 to 10.In Figs. 7 and 8, I2I designates the top of the cabinet, I22 the tubefor the various gas conductors leading to casing I08 and I23 the tubefor the various gas conductors leading to casing I09. I24 designates amultiple-way valve inserted in the circuit of the cooling medium, saidvalve being actuated by a hand lever I25, the position. of whichinclined toward the left denotes that the cooling medium is caused tofiow first through the network of conduits of easing I88 at the left andthen through the network of conduits of casing I09 at the right, so thatH is the dispensing keg and I I I is the keg which is being pre-oooled.

Valve I24 comprises a valve casing I26, provided with inlet I2! for thecooling medium coming from the condenser and outlet I28 for the coolingmedium returning to the compressor and two ports 529, I30, connected toone end of the cooling coils within casing I08 and casing I09,respectively, by connections I3I, I32. The other ends of said coolingcoils are connected to each other across tubes I22, I23, by a tubularconnection I33, shown in Fig. 8.

Within valve casing I26 is rotatably mounted a valve member I34,provided with two ducts I35, I36, adapted to connect inlet I2! andoutlet I28 to ports I29, I30, respectively, when said valve member is inthe position shown in full lines in Fig. and adapted to reverse theconnections when said valve member, being angularly displaced 90 in acounterclockwise direction, said ducts will be set in the position shownin dotted lines in said Fig. 10.

It is thus seen that by virtue of this arrangement the cooling mediumreaching inlet I21 through pipe I31 will be caused to flow throughconnection I3I and the network of conduits of casing I08, then throughtubular connection I33 it will be transferred to the network of conduitswithin casing I09, from which it will return to the compressor throughconnection I 32, duct I36, outlet I28 and pipe I38.

When valve member I34 is set in its other extreme position, where ductsI35, I36 will acquire the positions I35, I36, shown in dotted lines, thecooling medium will be caused to flow first through the network ofconduits within casing I09 and then through the network of conduitswithin casing I08.

When the pre-cooled keg is going to be used as the keg from which liquidwill be dispensed, it is also necessary to direct thereto the carbondioxide supplied by the drum. Therefore, valve casing I26 is alsoprovided with an inlet I39 connected to the carbon dioxide drum by apipe I40, an outlet I4I, to which is connected a pipe I42, leading tothe keg within casing I08 and an outlet I43 to which is connected a pipeI44 leading to the keg within casing I09. The valve member I34 isaccordingly provided with a segmental chamber I45, from which extend twodiametrically opposite ducts I46, I41, which will establishcommunication between said chamber I45 and outlets I4I, I43,respectively, in the two positions of valve member I34. Thus, in theposition shown in Fig. 11, the carbon dioxide coming from the drum isdirected by duct I46 and pipe I42 to the keg within casing I88 and whenthe valve member will be turned 90 in a counterclockwise direction, thecarbon dioxide will be directed to the keg within casing I09 instead.

Suitable thermostatic means (not shown) controlling the operations ofthe motor and compressor are, of course, provided in a well knownmanner.

It is thus seen that I provide a thoroughly selfcontained apparatuscomplete with means for pre-cooling one keg, means for chilling a kegfrom which liquid is being dispensed, means for handling said kegs,means for compressing and circulating cooling medium, means forsupplying carbon dioxide under the proper pressure to the keg from whichliquid is being dispensed and means for reversing the connections forthe flow of the cooling medium and the carbon dioxide respectively. Suchan apparatus constitutes in itself a complete installation, making itunnecessary to provide a separate pre-cooling plant and hoisting andconveying devices between the precooling plant and the cooling anddispensing device.

It is obvious that the constructional details of my invention can varyfrom those shown without departing from the inventive idea. The drawingswill, therefore, be understood as being intended for illustrativepurposes only and not in a limiting sense.

I accordingly reserve the right to carry my invention into practice inall those ways and manners which may enter, fairly, into the scope ofthe appended claims.

I claim:

1. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two

icasings each adapted. to receive.andsurroundparltially:atleast,\theperipheral surface, of 'a. barrel, .anetworkoflconduitswithin. each casing, adjacent lthersurface of. a barrelhoused therein, the twomnetworks of conduits being interconnected, meanswithin saidstructure for circulating cooling medium, and connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits, causingthe cooling medium ;to circulate firstthrough the network of conduits ofthe;casing housing a barrel from which liquid is tobe dispensed, and.then through the network of conduits of the other ;casing,,forpre-cooling of theliquid within the barrel housed therein.

2. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two casings eachadapted to receive andsurround partially at least, the peripheral surface of a barrel,anetworkof conduitswithin each-casing,

" 2 adjacent the surface of a barrel housed therein,

the two networks .lOf conduits being interconnected, means within saidstructure forcirculating cooling medium, connections between saidcirculating means and said networks of conduits, and means inserted insaid connections for selectively determining the sequence of flow ofsaid medium throughsaid two networks of conduits.

l 3.,A self co-ntained supportingand cooling device forbarrelscomprising, in combination, two casings each adapted toreceiveand surround partially at least, the peripheral surface of, a barrel, anetworkof conduits within each casing, adjacent thesurfaceof abarrelhoused therein, the two networksof conduits being interconnected,means within saidistructure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits; causingthe cooling medium to circulate first through the network of conduits ofthe casing housing a barrel from which liquid is to be dispensed, andthen through the network of con-- duits of the other casing, forpre-cooling of the liquid within the barrel housed therein, a carbondioxide container associated with said structure, and a tubulardischarge outlet therefor, adapted to be connected to the barrel fromwhich liquid is to be dispensed.

i. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two casings each adapted toreceive andsurround partially at least, the peripheral surface of a barrel, anetwork of conduits within each casing, adjacent the surface of a barrelhoused therein, the two networks of conduits being interconnected, meanswithin said structure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits, a carbondioxide container associated with said structure, a tubular dischargeoutlet therefor, means inserted in said connections for selectivelydetermining the sequence of flow of said cooling medium through said twonetworks of conduits, and means for selectively connecting saiddischarge outlet to one or the other barrel.

5. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two casings each adapted to receive andsurround partially at least, the peripheral surface of a barrel, anetwork of conduits within each casing, adjacent the surface of a barrelhoused therein, the two networks of conduits being interconnected, meanswithin said structure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits, a carnondioxide container associated with said struc- 3131116, 1a :atubulardischargaputlet therefor, and ;valve ;means, inserted in; saidconnectionsyand discharge outlet, for selectively determining thesequence of flowof said coolingmedium'through said two networksofconduits, andforconnecting a:

said discharge outlet to the barrel housed within the casing throughthenetwork ofQconduitsof which the cooling medium is caused to, flowfirst.

; 6. A self-contained supportinggand cocling,de,-

vice for barrels comprising, ingcombination, two

casings each adapted to receive'andsurround partially at least, theperipheral surface of a barrel, a network of conduits withineach-casing, adjacent the surface of a barrel housed therein,

the two networks of conduits beingintercon- J- means,,mounted on saidstructure',,for hoisting and handling barrels to be placed within ,saicasings, or removed therefrom. f 7.. A self-contained supporting andcooling ,de*

vice for barrels comprising, in combination, stwo casings each adaptedto receive and surround partially atleast, the peripheral, surface of :abarrel, a network of conduits within each casing, adjacent the surfaceof a barrel housed therein, the two networks of conduits beinginterconnected, means within said structure. for Jcirculating coolingmedium, connections between said circulating means and said networks ofconduits,

means inserted in said connections for selectively determining thesequence of flow of said medium through said two networks of conduits,and a crane of the goose-neck type rotatably mounted on said structure.

8. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two casings each adapted to receive andsurround partially at least, the peripheral surface of a barrel, anetwork of conduits within each casing, adjacent the surface of a barrelhoused therein, the two networks of conduits being interconnected, meanswithin said structure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits, a carbondioxide container associated with said structure, a tubular dischargeoutlet therefor, valve means, inserted in said connections and dischargeoutlet, for selectively determining the sequence of flow of said coolingmedium through said two networks of conduits, and for connecting saiddischarge outlet to the barrel housed within the casing through thenetwork of conduits of which the cooling medium is caused to flow first,and means indicating the position of said valve means.

9. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two

, casings each adapted to receive and surround partially at least, theperipheral surface of a barrel, a network of conduits within eachcasing, adjacent the surface of a barrel housed therein, the twonetworks of conduits being interconnected, means within said structurefor circulating cooling medium, connections between said circulatingmeans and said networks of conduits, a carbon dioxide containerassociated with said structure, a tubular discharge outlet therefor,

valve means, inserted in said connections and discharge outlet, forselectively determining the sequence of flow of said cooling mediumthrough said two networks of conduits, and for connecting said dischargeoutlet to the barrel housed within the casing through the network ofconduits of which the cooling medium is caused to flow first, and means,mounted on said structure for hoisting and handling barrels to be placedwithin said casings, or removed therefrom.

10. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, two casings each adapted to receive andsurround partially at least, the peripheral surface of a barrel, anetwork of conduits within each casing, adjacent the surface of a barrelhoused therein, the two networks of conduits being interconnected, meanswithin said structure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said networks of conduits, a carbondioxide container associated with said structure, a tubular dischargeoutlet therefor, valve means, inserted in said connections and dischargeoutlet, for selectively determining the sequence of flow of said coolingmedium through said two networks of conduits, and for connecting saiddischarge outlet to the barrel housed within the casing through thenetwork of conduits of which the cooling medium is caused to flow first,means indicating the position of said valve means, and means, mounted onsaid structure, for hoisting and handling barrels to be placed withinsaid casings, or removed therefrom.

11. A self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising, in combination, a

casing adapted to receive and snugly surround partially at least, theperipheral surface of a barrel, a network of conduits within said casingadjacent the position occupied by the surface of a barrel within saidcasing, a cabinet structure for supporting said casing, means withinsaid structure for circulating cooling medium, connections between saidcirculating means and said network of conduits, and a tubular dischargemember having an outlet terminal and an inlet terminal located withinsaid cabinet and adapted to be connected to a high pressure gascontainer, said outlet terminal being arranged within said casing inposition to be connected to the bung of such barrel.

12. In a self-contained supporting and cooling device for barrelscomprising a casing adapted to receive and snugly surround partially atleast, the peripheral surface of a barrel, a network of conduits withinsaid casing adjacent the position occupied by the surface of a barrelwithin said casing, a cabinet structure for supporting said casing, andmeans within said structure for circulating cooling medium, connectionsbetween said circulating means and said network of conduits, a tubulardischarge member having an outlet terminal and an inlet terminal locatedWithin said cabinet and adapted to be connected to a high pressure gascontainer, said outlet terminal being arranged within said casing inposition to be connected to the bung of such barrel, and a tubularenclosure for said connections and discharge member extending betweensaid cabinet structure and the lower part of said casing.

EDWARD C. CLIFFORD.

